Main DraftKings NBA picks January 6: Get your Boogie on!
By Mike Marteny
Main DraftKings NBA picks January 6: Get your Boogie on
There were only two afternoon games, but the evening picks up with six games in the main DraftKings tournament. There are some stars out in this one, but also some tough matchups for them. Which ones are worth using? Let’s check it out!
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The lines were down a ways last night to 261 points. The Pistons/Sixers game turning into a blowout hurt the bottom line of many lineups. Virtually no one hit value in that game, and Ish Smith, Embiid, and Covington were all pretty widely owned. .
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Point Guards
Best Bets:
Chris Paul ($10,000): Paul’s price is rocketing upward, but his production hasn’t been what we expected. Seriously though, we can’t expect Paul to be Harden. Others have taken over the scoring load, so Paul is distributing like Harden was. He is doing what we should expect from him. Still, Paul has been over 50 DraftKings points in two of the three games, so it’s not unreasonable to expect it here.
Kris Dunn ($7,100): It’s hard to rely on Wall right now, especially considering his well below average game against the Bucks earlier in the season. I would rather go down to Dunn, who is much cheaper and has 69.5 DraftKings points in two games against the Pacers. That puts Dunn right around 5x value.
Honorable Mention:
Eric Bledsoe ($7,000): Bledsoe put up 35.75 DraftKings points on Wall and the Wizards in the first meeting. He outperformed Wall in that game, and could very well do it again. I’m not going to say that he is a lock to outduel Wall again, but I would say that 35 DraftKings points is very possible, which is what is really important, right?
Elfrid Payton ($6,700): The Cavs have been giving up a ton of points to opposing point guards. This looks like a very good situation for Payton. Payton has at least 30 DraftKings points in each of the last eight games. Payton is trending upward right now and is a very solid play tonight.
Dark Horses:
Ish Smith ($5,500): Smith has had some good games filling in for Reggie jackson, but not all of them can be good. Smith was below average last night in a matchup that should have favored him. Then again, the Pistons couldn’t buy a bucket in the blowout loss, so everyone’s numbers suffered. Smith still looks like a solid value pick tonight.
Tyus Jones ($4,500): I don’t always suggest Tyus Jones, but when I do, it’s because he has one of the best matchups on the slate. The Pelicans have surrendered 50.25 DraftKings points to him in 52 minutes in two games this year. This looks like another night where Jones can hit value. Those haven’t been all that common lately.
My pick: Payton(PG), Jones(G); Jones(G)
Shooting Guards:
Best Bets:
Victor Oladipo ($8,400): Oladipo has 91 DraftKings points in two games against the Bulls this year. He was upgraded to questionable yesterday and will give it a go pregame to see if he can play. Luckily, this is one of the early games, so we should know what kind of limitations if any Oladipo will face. If he is a go for normal minutes, Oladipo is good enough to anchor a lineup with.
Jimmy Butler ($8,200): Butler’s first two games against the Pelicans were before December, so they aren’t a real indicator of Butler’s importance to this offense right now. The Pelicans are in the bottom ten in the league against shooting guards. I think Butler has a nice game here, despite his early season struggles against New Orleans.
Honorable Mention:
Bradley Beal ($7,800): Beal has been the go-to guy on the Wizards offense right now. Wall has struggled with his shot since returning, but Beal has picked up a lot of the slack. He has 170 DraftKings points in the last three games, making Beal one of the hottest players going today. Beal should be well worth this price.
Eric Gordon ($6,800): This is not a great matchup for Gordon, but he has been amazing in two games with Harden out. He was a large part of winning lineups on Thursday with Harden out. I don’t know that Gordon will hit the mid 40’s tonight, but 5x value is likely.
Jrue Holiday ($6,500): Holiday has 71 DraftKings points in two games against the Timberwolves this year. He is the main offensive threat from the perimeter for the Pelicans. Holiday has also put up some big numbers at times this year. He has the coveted upside for GPP play.
Dark Horses:
Justin Holiday ($5,300): Holiday is making his case for being a rotation regular even when LaVine returns. Holiday has three straight games of at least 5x value. Tonight’s tilt with Indiana is a good matchup. Don’t be surprised to see him top 30 tonight.
Gerald Green ($5,100): Green has been one of the best value plays around with Harden down. Green has 79.75 DraftKings points in the two games without Harden. Green’s price is higher now, but he is still a spectacular value play tonight.
My pick: Green(SG); Butler(SG), Beal(G)
Small Forwards:
Best Bets:
LeBron James ($11,600): James struggled against the Magic the first time around, but we all know what he is capable of. The only question is whether he will do better against the Magic this time around. The King only played 31 minutes in the first game, so it’s safe to expect more court time tonight. Whether that will amount to roughly double his first output against the Magic is anyone’s guess.
Giannis Antetokounmpo ($10,500): Giannis is picking up his production lately, but he only put up 45 DraftKings points in the first game with Washington. This is not an easy matchup by any means, but to guys like the upper two tonight that are known by just one name, the matchup doesn’t much matter. They can put up value against anyone.
Honorable Mention:
Evan Fournier ($6,200): Fournier has been ice cold from the floor, going just 6-26 over the last two games. However, this would be the place for him to get back on track. Cleveland allows a ton of open shots from the perimeter. The only question is whether Fournier can hit them.
Will Barton ($5,700): Barton has been the most reliable fantasy guard for the Nuggets lately. Harris is more consistent, but with his price the way it is, Barton is by far the better value. Barton has put up over 5x value in each of the last three games, and put up 70.25 DraftKings points in the prior two games against the Kings.
Dark Horses:
Denzel Valentine ($4,500): Valentine has performed well against the Pacers so far this year, but his production has become for more inconsistent with Holiday around. If using Bulls value, I would probably only play one of Valentine or Holiday. Whichever one you can afford.
Kelly Oubre ($4,300): The value tier at SF is pretty barren tonight, and I only like the Oubre play if Otto Porter is indeed held out. Oubre hasn’t been seeing nearly enough minutes otherwise to take a chance on him. He has only played 30 minutes total over the last two games.
My pick: Barton(SF), Barton(SF)
Power Forwards
Best Bets:
Anthony Davis ($9,900): Davis chewed up the Jazz last night, who had been strong defensively even without Gobert. Gibson did well against Davis the first time around, but with the way A.D. is playing, it’s going to be hard to keep him under wraps. Davis has two games in the 60’s and one more in the 50’s over the last four games.
Aaron Gordon ($8,000): This looks like a great matchup for Gordon. Cleveland’s frontcourt is better with Tristan Thompson around, but Gordon is capable of big games. This could be one of the places for it to happen.
Honorable Mention:
Kevin Love ($7,700): Love had a rough night against Boston, and is still listed as questionable tonight. However, there is potential for Love should he be in the lineup. Vucevic is still out for Orlando, so the interior is still a little weaker. Love can exploit that.
Nikola Mirotic ($6,500): Mirotic torched the Pacers for 43.5 DraftKings points in his only meeting against them this season. Mirotic is one of the best and most reliable bench players out there. The minutes are always there, and he can get hot at any given time.
Lauri Markkanen ($6,300): Markkanen has done well against the Pacers too. Don’t be shy about playing both Markkanen and Mirotic in your lineup. They are going to attack the Pacers at their weakest point, which has been power forward. There is huge potential for both of them.
Dark Horses:
Trey Lyles ($5,600): Lyles has been outstanding lately. He is performing way above his price range. Lyles has only missed 5x value once since Millsap went down. That’s it. Lyles is one of the best value plays on the market right now.
Domantas Sabonis ($5,200): The Pacers has been working Sabonis into the rotation more and more. He has responded with more than 5x value in seven of his last nine games. His upside is capped because Thad Young still plays regular minutes. However, Sabonis is the one to own from this slot for the Pacers.
My pick: Lyles(PF), Markkanen(F), Sabonis(UTIL); Lyles(PF), Mirotic(F), Markkanen(UTIL), Sabonis(C)
Center:
Best Bets:
DeMarcus Cousins ($10,800): Cousins has torn up the Timberwolves this year. He has 114.25 DraftKings points in two games against Minnesota this year. I don’t know that I would trust both of them, but Cousins is the one that I would be all over tonight. If you are spending big tonight, Cousins is likely your best option.
Nikola Jokic ($8,500): If you can’t afford Boogie, Jokic could be a decent fallback option. The numbers for the Kings against centers are not great, but they have been improving lately. Jokic is far from a consistent option, but he is capable of putting up big numbers in the right matchup.
Honorable Mention:
Clint Capela ($6,600): Capela has routinely been a source of value all season long. He has a nice matchup against Drummond tonight. I’m not sure that Capela has a ton of upside, but he has enough to make him worth using here.
Bismack Biyombo ($5,700): Biyombo struggled against Houston, but Cleveland may be undersized enough that he can hold his own up front with these guys. It will take a game that is near the top of Biyombo’s scale for him to hit value here. Just keep that in mind if you looking to Biyombo for value here.
Dark Horse:
Tristan Thompson ($4,100): Thompson is getting back up to his regular minutes load. He has responded with at least 6x value in two of the last three games. If you need to go this cheap, Thompson is probably the best option in this price range.
My pick: Cousins(C); N/A
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